Agnostic.com

31 1

Should I travel and seek a different reality?

I've lived at the same address thirteen years alone. My mother passed here my dog has passed and I'm so comfortable in this town. I always thought I would like to travel and now I have a new car, education and no bonds. Should I finally try to see something new or do what has kept me safe so long? I feel like life is passing by yet I have good income, credit and able to apply for jobs far away and roam but I stay in the area and home.

Holymoly 4 June 23
Share

Enjoy being online again!

Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.

Create your free account

31 comments

Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.

10

"A ship is always safe at shore, but that's not what it was built for."

Take a risk, you can always go home.

Wow that's heavy

Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer." Traveling is a great way to gain new experiences and perspectives and can help you grow as a person. One suggestion for you is to consider taking a trip to Tanzania and hiking Mount Kilimanjaro. It's an amazing experience and a great way to challenge yourself physically and mentally. It was my first trip when I went climbing there. When I came back home, I realized I'd never be the same. So, if you decide to go, check this out [mybeautifuladventures.com]. I hope you'll consider taking the leap and seeing something new. The world is waiting for you!

8

i started moving ..out of college,1st for a job. then i realized im a gypsy... im living this summer in GREECE... these people are nice, but so were the JAPANESE.
and like the other person said, YOU CAN ALWAYS GO HOME. id advise you to push yourself... CONFORT IS OVER-RATED...... Adventure is my drug of choice R

@Yogisan mytilini.... And I'm doing some carpentry in Thermi R
What did you do here?

7

It doesn't seem like an either / or question. I have a comfortable, paid-for home in a town I love, but if I were single and unattached / unencumbered I might very well mothball it for a few weeks or even months at a time and see what it feels like to live in Oslo or Christchurch or Wherever for awhile. So long as I have good Internet access and a willingness to be available during my client's business hours, I could work anywhere in the world and they wouldn't even know it.

If you're a locally employed work commuter then you couldn't have that much flexibility but you still have vacation time and it's still possible to negotiate unpaid time off beyond that if you have two weeks of vacation and want to take a week or two more.

Even if you were contemplating shaking things up it would be prudent to dip your toes in first.

6

GO!!! Explore!!!
Learn to be uncomfortable!!!!!
Have some new experiences!
If I could still drive, I'd never be home!!!
I'd probably have visited a bunch of the people on this site by now!
I'd never be home (yes, I know I've said it twice--I really mean it!!!!)!!!!
It's a big world, go see some of it!!!!

Why can't you drive? Use uber?

@Bigwavedave Visually unable, legally blind. NO ONE wants me behind the wheel.
There is no Uber here. Besides, where I want to go, Uber wouldn't take me.

Thank you.

@KKGator. Awww where do you want to go? I am assuming you mean too impaired to drive...can you see landscapes?

6

you should give up all the material securities you talk about and roam the earth seeking out other cultures. it's the most important education you will ever receive.

6

I am fascinated by people who grew up in the same town (sometimes the same house) as their parents and stay surrounded by family and the friends they've made over the years. I was an Army brat - we moved every three years....1st husband followed gov't contracts so we moved about every 3 or 4 years to follow the jobs....I honestly don't know if I would have been happy staying in one place or not because it was never an option. I can say that all that moving around has given me the chance to see how other people in other parts of our country live, think, work, - the way, and what they eat, how they cook, etc. I've met some really interesting people along the way. No one can tell you what will be right for you....but maybe you could find a job somewhere you've always wanted to visit - rent out your house so you can always go back if you decide the move was a mistake. I think you owe it to yourself to at least give it a shot - shake those tailfeathers just a little. 😉

6

I definitely recommend travelling. It really broadens the mind and helps get a better perspective.

5

I have moved 23 times in my life, 20 moves before I came to Omaha 15 years ago. I have learned something about me and about people every time I have moved. I turned 20 in Okinawa. Living in so many places has shaped me into the wonderful, open minded, opinionated, liberal hippie chick that I am. Are you willing to get out of your comfort zone and explore? It might be uncomfortable, and it will be different. Once you try it you will never be the same person you were.

Wow 23 moves! My handle should actually be itchyfeetjulie because I have spent my entire adult life 'moving' but I have never really counted them. I think you might outdo me by a few though. 😀 Now I am going to sit down and count mine. hee hee and I agree once you try it you will never be the same.

@patchoullijulie I was applying for a job about 9 years ago, and they wanted all my previous addresses, and I said "give me more paper." I made a list of them, I even remembered telephone numbers. I don't remember the telephone numbers any more, but I know the addresses, including 3 overseas. I have checked on most of them on Google Maps. Some of them aren't there any more.

@HippieChick58 I can totally relate to that. I have a hard copy list of all the address's and phone numbers of where I have lived, that I can both remember and have discovered through old paperwork. I wouldn't change any of it for the world.

4

In choosing to ravel, you are not seeking a new reality, but expanding and enriching your total reality.

4

It's funny how society often views travel as a negative when it is a total positive. I was discussing our travels with some people when we had returned home to Canada for a visit with family, we had been traveling for about 4 years at that point. Antarctica, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Belize, Mexico and almost all of the lower 48 states. So after a bit of chatting the woman screws up her face at me and says, 'So You're Homeless'. I was a bit taken aback, thought about it for a second and suddenly realized that she was right 'You know, you're absolutely right and it's Fantastic' I said. She didn't know what to think of that response and made some excuse to shuffle away and talk to someone else about her routine and boring life - to each their own.

Exactly! People ask me "where's home".....and I am always lost for words. "Home" has always been just wherever I am at the time.... I have owned many houses over the years - they've all been different - and lovely - each in their own way. But in the end - it was just a house that was easily replaced by another.

4

Come to UK.

Amisja Level 8 June 23, 2018

I would love to!

@Holymoly Come on then...nothing to stop you

3

Generally, you change geography but people are still people wherever you go.
So, decide whether you want to see the landscape change.

3

By all means travel as much as you can and to as many places that you are comfortable traveling too. Life is brief and unpredictable so take advantage of it while you still can and have the privilege to do so.

3

If you don't go then you will never know what you have missed out on. Just a whole other part of your life that is wonderful and fun and exciting and challenging. Travel cures so many ills in the world, don't wait, do it now. If you don't like it you can always come back home.

3

The fact that you are asking the question tells me that you want to roam. Exposure to things outside of our bubble are good for the soul. Better to have tried and failed than to have not tried at all and to then spend your days wondering! 😀

3

GO. I've been to 28 different countries or US possessions, most when I was 18-22. Life altering, wonderful experience.

3

You can travel the world or even to the moon but most likely find out as did Dorothy "There's no place like home". It is , however, necessary to undertake the journey to understand it internally rather than intellectually.

I'm not feeling no place like home. I grew up in Baltimore md and my first professional job was in Lynchburg va. Home of Jerry Falwell. I now live in Raleigh Nc... best place so far. But Tuscany beckons.

@Bigwavedave If Tuscany beckons, you must go there 🙂

That's how i feel but travel calls

@Bigwavedave I'm torn between Tuscany, Provence and/or the Greek Islands. If I hit the lotto, it will be all three.....

@Lavergne I have been to Tuscany twice and provence once. Visitingwas great... I am thinking just renting a one bedroom flat for a month or so in the fall or spring. I still have to get to greece

@Bigwavedave awwwwww - I am so envious I have turned a delightful shade of green. 😉

3

You should most definitely see the world if you have the means to do so. Don't hesitate to PM me if you need some input on things to do, places to stay and cultural norms.

I can give some pretty extensive advice on Scotland, England, Japan, Thailand, Costa Rica and Hong Kong.

Here is the list, in order of preference, of countries I would prioritize:

  1. Thailand- Safe, modern and affordable. Thai people are very welcoming and helpful to first time visitors. Most everybody speaks at least passable English. There are more things to see, do and experience in Thailand than you can possibly fit in to one trip. But that's ok. I've never met a person who went to Thailand once that didn't go back. Most have gone back several times, and with good reason.
  2. Scotland- Beautiful, laid back country with lots of awesome pubs, castles and fish and chip places. Down to earth and friendly locals who will talk your ear off if you give them half a chance. Obviously, Scotland's lochs and castles and Stonehenge are highlights, although seeing Stonehenge isn't much worth it these days because they won't let anybody get near it anymore. Back when I saw it, you could walk right up and touch the stones.
  3. Japan- A nice place to see, but pretty westernized and very expensive. You won't get much in regards to experiencing true Asian culture. I recommend going in the spring during the Cherry Blossom Festival.
  4. England- A fun country to be in, but you won't have all that much in regards to a cultural experience. London is a blast. Great party town.
  5. Hong Kong- Like England, a fun town to hang out in. I'm placing it 5th because it can be a bit confusing to someone who has never been in the city before, and few people speak english. Pick pockets are also plentiful in Hong Kong. Save this one for when you are a more seasoned traveler.
  6. Costa Rica- Costa Rica is a wonderful country to see, but I would recommend saving this one for when you're a more seasoned traveler as well. It's not the safest country in the world and you can find yourself getting mugged or worse if you wander off in to the wrong areas.

I would recommend going with a tour group the first few times you travel. It'll help you pick up on the how to's of traveling much quicker. You don't want your first travel experience to be an endless maze of trying to figure things out. You'll have less freedom and spontinaity with a tour group, but you'll also have a better experience.

3

Take your pick, your life, your choices !

3

Started in 1993 with a business trip to the Philippines. Since then I have spent the bulk of the past 15 years out of Australia, most of it in Asia. I also have traveled most of the East Coast of Australia as a grey nomad. Don't wait as I did.

2

The world will be fucked up no matter where you go. It is just a matter of degree and how well you can adapt to the local problems.

Many people move constantly looking for a better place where they can be happy, when it is their attitude that needs to be changed. As the old saying goes "no matter where you go, there you are."

2

Try getting your feet wet without going all that far, and see if you like it. You always have your home base to return to, if you don't enjoy yourself.

Deb57 Level 8 June 23, 2018
2

Different reality? As far as i know we have not opened a door to another demension. As far as traveling to see other places (not a different reality) you can take vacations and go see other culture if thats what you want.

Well, what mean is breaking the norm creates something new and that's reality.

2

I love to move, to travel, live in different countries, but I was born and raised abroad, so that's understandable. Some people are just homebodies.

I must say, I quite like living in Songkhla, Thailand. Best place I've lived in so far, even though I soon have to move back to the US.

Well... if you happen to be selling your place in Songkhla, then I happen to know some folks who have their sites set on retiring in Thailand one day.

Sorry you're going to have to leave Thailand. If I were you, I'd move mountains in the effort to find a way to stay. You really don't want to come back to the United States right now. Things are not good.

@webbew1 I'm renting an apartment. I've lived all over Thailand..Saraburi, Lopburi, Lamnarai, Nakhon, and Songkhla, since 2014. I came here to photograph birds and wildlife, and I've been teaching ESL, but now I have cancer and must recover before I can travel to return to the US. I'm taking cannabis oil and getting better, but haven't been able to get very much at a time.It still seems to be working, though.

1

How about a bit of a compromise? Try some traveling and exploring, but not make it permanent! I love traveling, and learned that from my world-traveler grandparents (who visited every continent, save for Antarctica, and that was because Grandma had a heart attack before the trip to go there), and reinforced by my world-traveling parents. I love road trips and flights equally, although I just took possession of my new travel trailer, so I am hitting the road with my own little house and my dogs. I don't work, so I don't have any time constraints, but even if only traveling on weekends, or using vacation days, you might be able to check out some nearby areas. Perhaps sign up with a temp agency that works in different cities? Good luck!

Rustee Level 7 June 27, 2018
Write Comment
You can include a link to this post in your posts and comments by including the text q:113613
Agnostic does not evaluate or guarantee the accuracy of any content. Read full disclaimer.